No comments about The Maverick Guide to Hawaii.

No comments about The Rough Guides' Maui Directions 2 (Rough Guide Directions).

3 comments about Between the Folds: Stories of Cloth, Lives, and Travels from Sumba.

1. Hopefully this will come out in second edition. We need to read how these stories go on! Good anthropology!



2. Reads like a novel, but is also scholarly. This is a really unique ethnography! My students have loved it. Highly recommended for scholars, textile people, and Indonesia enthusiasts. Great writing, ethnographic details, and up close descriptions of the lives of an amazing range of characters from a "traditional" eastern Indonesian culture in modern times. The chapter about the intersections of cultures in Bali is priceless and would make a good film. By the end of the book, I felt like I knew the main characters and wanted their stories to go on. Good anthropology!



3. This is an amazing book. It is eloquently written, engaging and insightful...one of the best books out there on Indonesian textiles and their recent transformations. Collectors, scholars and students alike will find this book one of their favorites. I've assigned this book in classes and students love it--they tell me it is one they will keep on their shelves. I agree--it is a keeper!

No comments about Seeing the South Sea Islands;: Being the story of a jaunt through Hawaii, Samoa, Tahiti, the Cook Islands, Australia and New Zealand,.

4 comments about The Backpackers Guide to Hawai'i.

1. Stuarts description of trails is to the tee. I am an avid hiker amongst the islands and have looked and used several books on hiking Hawaii, and none compare to Stuart's. I hiked Ko'olau Summit Trail in early September, I had Stuart's book to guide me. The book starts the trail off on the La'ie Trail which intersects with the summit trail. In his notes he states that one can hike the trail from Pupukea, but it is very overgrown and muddy. Haa, I thought . I have hiked some overgrown trails in my day, how bad can this be. Let me tell how bad it is! It was just about the worst hike I have ever been on. From Pupukea to the La'ie Trail junction was some of the worst trail conditions I have ever encountered. What little trail there was, was overgrown so badly that it took us two full days (16 hours) to hike approximately 15 miles. Needless to say once we got past the La'ie Trail junction, his book led us effortlessly to the Schofield-Waikane Trail. I actually thougt about going to Kipapa Ridge. whew! If Stuart says its overgrown it is, if he says it is beautiful it is. His book is easy to read, follow, and understand. I would highly recommend both his hiking books over all books covering trails on the Hawaiin Islands



2. Anyone thinking of overnight stays in the Hawaii backcountry should have this book. In it is info about getting to the trailhead, negotiating the trail itself, and more. I've used it for trips across Haleakala, to Halape, and up Mauna Loa. Don't leave home without it. [g]



3. I tried to like this book. But the more I tried, the more disappointed I was.

   I've gone back and forth with myself over whether this book ought to describe more trails. After all, ten backpacking trips, four of which are in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, seems a bit spare. I decided not to give this book a lower rating since I did buy it because it says "backpackers" in the title, and looking at other guide books and maps has convinced me that there are probably a limited number of multi-day trips available on the islands. Nonetheless, you should keep in mind that it's a bit thin for its price tag. Looking at similarly priced titles on my bookshelf, I would expect twice as many trips and more descriptions of branch trails and day hikes beyond the destination campsites.

   The trail descriptions themselves are good. The overviews are enjoyable and include major landmarks along the way. The overviews are then followed by overly detailed route descriptions. They go so far as to tell you to "Pass a mango tree on the right," and they count the number of switchbacks you ascend or descend. This is useful for unmarked or unmaintained trails, such as the dayhike to Pu'u 'O'o, but unnecessary filler for many of the other trails.

   Most disappointing were the maps. The book has island-level locator maps that show you the general area each trip can be found. But there are no overview maps to give you a feel for what each trip looks like from start to finish. And the detail maps are themselves problematic. They have no color coding, so the reader is left to decipher a map showing gray text on top of gray topographical features on top of gray contour lines. And like a AAA trip planner, the maps are oriented so that the trail runs up-and-down the page without regard for the cardinal directions. For the Mauna Loa trip, North rotates over four maps from the bottom left of the page to the top of the page.

   The book's one saving grace is it's photography. 16 pages of beautiful pictures will help you decide which trails appeal to you. Halape, on the beach in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, looks like heaven on earth. And after looking at the pictures, I'm pretty sure that I'd like to dayhike the barren Mauna Loa or Haleakala, but I don't want to camp there.




4. I have taken this book (or photocopies of relavant information) on all my backpackings throughout the Hawaiian islands. This includes hikes and backpackings on Oahu, Kauai, Maui, and Hawaii and have hiked in parks such as Kokee, Kalalau, Haleakala, and Hawaii Volcanoes National Parks. Fabulous information regarding trail routes, how to get to the trailheads, and what permit and important information any experienced backpacker needs to know. I've led backpacking groups, too, with this information. Stuart Ball has been there and knows his stuff. Highly recommended by the Backyard Oahu website!!

No comments about A Pocket Guide to Kauai.

No comments about An Underwater Guide to Indonesia.

5 comments about Kauai Underground Guide (Book & Audio CD, 17th Edition).

1. Purchased this guide and the Kauai Revealed for an upcoming trip to the islands. Revealed is far and away a much more informative and seemingly provides unbiased assessments. Unlike most guide books it actually makes for interesting reading. Kauai Underground does not provide indepth enough descriptions and/or directions to sights. I gave the Underground 2 stars only because it came with the CD of Hawaiian music which I did find enjoyable.



2. This book is packed full of great advice on things to do, sites to see and places to see while on Kauai. Definitely worth taking with you if you're lucky enough to take a vacation on Kauai



3. This book is by far the best of all the guide books for Kauai if you are looking for an overview of all the island has to offer. Comprehensive and family oriented...really a treat. Helps you to feel a bit more like a local and less like Haole. It's too bad it is no longer in print...BUY it NOW while you can! I'd have given it a 5 star but our favorite resturaunt is not in there. (Olympic Cafe in Kapaa). For all I know the resturaunt wasn't around when she originally wrote it. The music on the CD is nice too, really sets you in the mood.



4. So much valuble information............ I carried it everywhere with me. I bought it first 16 years ago, mine was getting tattered so I purchased an updated edition.......... highly recommended!



5. This book was extremely disappointing. I have been visiting Kauai since 1994 and relying upon the excellent guidebook - The Ultimate Kauai Guidebook for all of those trips. I thought it might be fun to discover some new things on the island, so I purchased this "underground" book to discover some places and businesses that I might not yet have found. There is nothing underground about this book. It should be called "standard Kauai information" since it's really nothing more than a verbatim and poorly formatted listing of every business, place, and thing on the island. It's the same stuff you'd find with any other guidebook just much more poorly executed. The maps are extremely hard to find and use, the organization and index is nearly useless. There is only one thing in the entire book that was new and interesting to me - a mention of "peoples market" at Hwy 56 in Puhi. No phone number or address or directions were provided. Nobody in the area could help me find it, in fact, everyone said the instructions were impossible, as Hwy 56 does not even go to Puhi. This was typical of my experience with this frustrating book. If you're looking for a book on Kauai, I strongly recommend Ultimate Kauai Guidebook instead of this one.

4 comments about Hidden Maui: Including Lahaina, Kaanapali, Haleakala, and the Hana Highway (Hidden Travel).

1. Despite the title, there's nothing especially "hidden" in this book. It is a tolerably-good guide to Maui, but nothing special. Most everything in it can be found in any decent guide to the island.



2. It should be titled "Things other books talk about when describing Maui". There was not much that I found new in this book that I have not read in other Maui tour books. It had some decent descriptions and pictures, but not much more then that. I was looking for some real "hidden" places and finds, but was really disappointed.



3. I am not sure why the previous reviewers gave so much flak to the author for this book, because it really is an excellent guide to the island. Most people like to compare each guide for Maui to the Wizard book, but if you consider the relationship between that "other" book and the locals, then Hidden Maui by far comes out on top.
   
   A nice guide for the island, one I'd recommend along with Maui Mile by mile and Driving Maui.



4. When you know you're going to Maui, this is a much better option than a book that addresses all the islands at once, like its sister book, Hidden Hawaii.
   
   There's a lot of information in here, although some of it I could have done without; if I wanted information about the culture, flora & fauna, geology, history and language, I would get a book about those things. This is supposed to be a vacation guidebook. That other stuff is extraneous, to my mind, and doesn't belong in this book.
   
   I did find that the "hidden" places they listed were ones I had not heard of in many other places. I don't know that much of anything is actually "hidden" out there any more; it's been developed so much in the last 30 years, you won't find many places that are really and truly unknown to at least some of the tourist traffic, especially if it's published in a book that will be read by thousands of vacationers. So, taking that into consideration, I guess the book lived up to its promise there, somewhat.
   
   I could have used some photos. There were none. But the maps were pretty good.
   
   I got a copy of this from the library for our trip to Maui in a couple of months; I may purchase this one to take along, as I found it more user-friendly and overall more useful than many other books I checked out.

No comments about Rand McNally Hawaii: EasyFinder.